This hands-on session will cover a number of low cost, yet powerful research methods to help you make better data-driven design decisions. You’ll work through a mini-project using these several techniques that will help you understand your user, begin to understand high-level requirements, start low-fidelity prototyping, and testing with users. TOPICS COVERED: A number of inexpensive, quick, but highly effective research and design methods when time and/or budget are limited Valuable 'how-tos' to execute the research What to do with the guerrilla research and design you do—how to proceed QUESTIONS ANSWERED: How do I get my boss or client to buy into doing research for my project? What is guerrilla research and how is it different than traditional research? What are some guerrilla research methods and what kind of results can I expect? How do I pick the right method(s)? What are the downsides/shortcomings of guerrilla research methods compared to other research methods?

1. GUERRILLA DESIGN &
RESEARCH METHODS
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE

2. TRADITIONAL RESEARCH
COSTS TENS OF THOUSANDS
OF DOLLARS.
They, from “That’s what they say”
TRUE OR FALSE

3. TRUE

4. WE DON’T HAVE THE TIME OR
BUDGET FOR RESEARCH.
They, from “That’s what they say”
TRUE OR FALSE

5. FALSE

6. WE DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO
USERS.
They, from “That’s what they say”
TRUE OR FALSE

7. WE ARE OUR USERS.
They, from “That’s what they say”
TRUE OR FALSE

8. WE KNOW WHAT OUR USERS
WANT/NEED.
They, from “That’s what they say”
TRUE OR FALSE

9. FALSE

10. WE DON’T HAVE THE TALENT/
SKILL TO PERFORM
RESEARCH.
They, from “That’s what they say”
TRUE OR FALSE

11. FALSE

12. GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS
AND SO MANY OTHER GREAT REASONS…
▸ Yeah, but this study will delay our launch date.
▸ Yeah, but we already know what the problems are.
▸ Yeah, but aren’t our designers supposed to know
what people need? They’re the experts.
▸ Yeah but we can’t learn much from only five
participants.
▸ Yeah, but we just want to launch and see if it sticks.
We’ll fix it later.
(Courtesy of Tomer Sharon author of “It’s Our Research” | @tsharon)

13. GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS
AND SO MANY OTHER GREAT REASONS…
▸ Yeah, but we can’t pay that much for this.
▸ Yeah, but our product managers already do
interviews and look at analytics.
▸ Yeah, but A/B testing gives us all the answers we
need.
▸ Yeah, but how statistically significant is a study with
five participants?
▸ Yeah, but can’t we run a quick study with internal
users instead?
(Courtesy of Tomer Sharon author of “It’s Our Research” | @tsharon)

14. GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS
AND SO MANY OTHER GREAT REASONS…
▸ Yeah, but research sounds to academic.
▸ Yeah, but Market Research already answered our
questions.
(Courtesy of Tomer Sharon author of “It’s Our Research” | @tsharon)

15. DEFINITION: GUERRILLA
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE
Image source © Time, Inc.

16. DEFINITION: GUERRILLA
JAY CONRAD LEVINSON
It is a body of unconventional ways of
pursuing conventional goals. It is a
proven method of achieving profits
with minimum money.
gaining insights
“

17. GUERRILLA METHODS ARE FASTER, LESS
RIGOROUS, LESS EXPENSIVE VERSIONS OF
THEIR NON-GUERRILLA COUSINS. THEY OFFER
AN ACCEPTABLE TRADE-OFF BETWEEN RIGOR
AND COST-EFFECTIVE TECHNIQUES.
Russ Unger & Todd Zaki Warfel
DEFINITION: GUERRILLA

18. THERE WILL BE
RESISTANCE
THIS IS GREAT, HOWEVER…

19. I CAN’T MAKE MULTI-MILLION
DOLLAR DECISIONS BASED ON
INFORMATION FROM 8-12 PEOPLE.
Todd’s Client (a big telco & media company)
DEFINITION: GUERRILLA

20. THIS IS ABOUT POINTS OF DATA.
NOT NUMBER OF PEOPLE.
CHANGE THE ARGUMENT

21. DEFINITION: GUERRILLA
JARED SPOOL
We look for what we call
the point of least astonishment.
“
Image source Center Centre

22. DEFINITION: GUERRILLA
LEISA REICHELT
For me, this means testing in the field
with a minimum of time, budget and
fuss so that this kind of activity and the
insight it provides is available to pretty
much any client/budget/timeframe.
“
Photo by Tim Duckett

23. DEFINITION: GUERRILLA
GINNY REDISH
Many of our current ethnographic
methods were once considered
guerrilla.
“

24. THE DIFFERENCE
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE
Image source © Time, Inc.

25. THE DIFFERENCE
TRADITIONAL DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS
▸ Provides the ability to inform design
▸ Uncovers how users think and behave
▸ Validates assumptions / removes bias
▸ Shows the difference between intention and reality
▸ Provides direction and data instead of opinion or
speculation
Image source © Time, Inc.

26. THE DIFFERENCE
GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS
▸ Faster
▸ Lower-cost
▸ Less effort
▸ Providing sufficient insight to make informed
decisions
▸ Just enough rigor to determine that a problem
exists
Image source © Time, Inc.

27. THE DIFFERENCE
GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS
▸ Have a time and a place
▸ Have a purpose
▸ Won’t replace traditional research methods
Image source © Time, Inc.

28. SOME GOOD RESEARCH IS
BETTER THAN NONE AT ALL.
Russ Unger & Todd Zaki Warfel
DEFINITION: GUERRILLA

29. EXAMPLES
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE
Image source © Time, Inc.

30. GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS EXAMPLES
EXAMPLES WE’LL DISCUSS
▸ Man on the Street
▸ Burrito Lunch
▸ User / Browser Role Playing
▸ Site Map Workshop
▸ Participatory Design
▸ A/B Testing
▸ Unmoderated Testing
▸ Remote Usability Testing
▸ Empathy Maps
▸ Design the Box
▸ Design Studio
▸ ...and there are so many
more

31. MAN ON THE STREET
Image source © Time, Inc.

32. BURRITO LUNCH
Image source awkwardfamilyphotos.com

33. BROWSER ROLE PLAY
Courtesy of Stephen P. Anderson

34. SITE MAP WORKSHOP

35. PARTICIPATORY DESIGN

36. A:B TESTING
50% higher conversion

37. GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS EXAMPLES
A:B TESTING TOOLS
▸ Performable
▸ Optimizely
▸ NinjaButton
▸ KISSmetrics
▸ Verster
▸ Modesty
▸ Omniture
▸ Website Optimizer
▸ A:B Theme Testing Plugin
for WordPress
▸ Visual Website Optimizer
▸ Unbounce

38. UNMODERATED TESTING

39. REMOTE TESTING

40. REMOTE TESTING

41. GUERRILLA DESIGN & RESEARCH METHODS EXAMPLES
REMOTE & UNMODERATED TESTING RESOURCES
▸ Glance.net
▸ WebEx
▸ Ethnio
▸ ReFramer
▸ Loop11
▸ OpenHallway
▸ UserFocus
▸ SilverBack
▸ UsabilityTest.com
▸ Survs
▸ SurveyMonkey
▸ Skype
▸ ABTests.com
▸ OptimalSort
▸ Userlytics
▸ Google Website Optimizer
▸ UserZoom
▸ ...and Countless Others

42. EMPATHY MAPS

43. DESIGN THE BOX

44. VIDEO DEMOS

45. THE WORK PART
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE

46. THE WORK PART
TODAY’S AGENDA
▸ Define Audience & Goals
▸ Identify Primary User Path
▸ Design Application
▸ Perform Usability Testing
▸ Share Findings

47. THE WORK PART
THE PROJECT: HOTEL CHECK IN & CHECK OUT APP
▸ People want to check-in & check-out of rooms
▸ System should manage room-based expenses
▸ System should function with or without a device
▸ Concierge-like service options

48. THE WORK PART
THIS IS HOW WE DO IT
▸ Create a Team Poster
▸ Create Empathy Map
▸ Generate User Flow
▸ Design Studio
▸ Recruiting and Testing
▸ Present Findings

49. DEFINE USER(S)

50. DEFINE FLOW

51. THE WORK PART
THE PROJECT: HOTEL CHECK IN & CHECK OUT APP
▸ People want to check-in & check-out of rooms
▸ System should manage room-based expenses
▸ System should function with or without a device
▸ Concierge-like service options

52. DESIGN STUDIO

53. THE WORK PART
SAMPLE EXERCISE: EMAIL FOR GRANDMA

54. THE WORK PART
THE PROJECT: HOTEL CHECK IN & CHECK OUT APP
▸ People want to check-in & check-out of rooms
▸ System should manage room-based expenses
▸ System should function with or without a device
▸ Concierge-like service options

55. THE WORK PART
SOME RULES OF CRITIQUE
▸ Do treat each other with respect – remember your idea is next
▸ Do encourage and embrace the craziness
▸ Do keep on track – time is limited
▸ Do get new ideas on paper – write, draw, scribble
▸ Do build on the ideas of others
▸ Do question the design
▸ Don’t judge or shoot down ideas based on your preferences
▸ Don’t talk over each other – everyone has a voice
▸ Don’t be a jackass!
(Courtesy of Bennett King | Konrad & King)

56. THE WORK PART
THE PROJECT: HOTEL CHECK IN & CHECK OUT APP
▸ People want to check-in & check-out of rooms
▸ System should manage room-based expenses
▸ System should function with or without a device
▸ Concierge-like service options

57. USABILITY TESTING

58. THE WORK PART
USABILITY TESTING - INTRODUCTION
Hi, my name is Russ, and I would like to ask for your help in testing
an application that I am building. In exchange for a few minutes of
your time, I will give you some of this delicious candy that I have!
I want to let you know that we are testing this application that
I have sketched, and NOT YOU; you are helping us, and any
feedback you have for us helps us, if it is positive or negative!
We will record this session, however we will not be recording your
face, so please do not worry about that.
Do you have any questions? Great! Let’s start!

59. THE WORK PART
USABILITY TESTING - TASKS
▸ How would you check-in to a hotel room using this “screen”?
▸ What do you think happens on the screen when you do that?
▸ <show next screen>
▸ How does this compare to what you expected to see on the
screen?

60. USABILITY TESTING

61. FIND SOME PEOPLE
AND TEST YOUR APP!
RETURN BY: 15:45
GET OUT OF THE BUILDING!

63. TEAM NAME

64. TEAM NAME

65. TEAM NAME

66. TEAM NAME

67. TEAM NAME

68. TEAM NAME

69. DESIGN THE BOX

70. WHAT WE LEARNED
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE

71. WHAT WE LEARNED
GUERRILLA METHODS…
▸ Have a time and a place
▸ Have a purpose
▸ Won’t replace traditional/non-guerrilla methods
▸ Some good research is better than none

72. WHAT WE LEARNED
ALSO…
▸ Faster
▸ Lower-cost
▸ Less effort
▸ Providing sufficient insight to make informed decisions
▸ Just enough rigor to determine that a problem exists

73. WHAT WE LEARNED
GET A LOT DONE IN A LITTLE BIT OF TIME
▸ Unified Direction About Users
▸ High-Level Requirements Validation
▸ Team Consensus and Collaboration
▸ Results from a Limited Set of Users
▸ No Lab Required

74. THANK YOU!
OCTOBER 5, 2016 - AMUSE CONFERENCE